The Princess and the Campus Heartthrob
by ccLozado
Summary: "Uhm- excuse me, I'm sorry but that's my seat." No one ever dared to talk to the school heartthrob, Harvey Specter, like that. And the moment she said that to him in front of the class, he just couldn't stop thinking about her. [AU. Harvey and Donna in high school.]
1. Chapter 1

**CHAPTER 1**

I am Donna Evelyn Paulsen. I'm a redhead. I'm originally from Vancouver, Canada but now I live in Cortland, New York. I grew up in a wealthy family. Well, I'm not trying to brag but it's the truth. I have three sisters. I was named after my grandmother, who was one of the most prominent actresses during her time. And as for my surname, Paulsen, well, are you familiar with the Paulsen clan who owns the Paulsen Industries? The one in Vancouver? Yeah, that one. Our family owns that. Basically, if you didn't take the time to know me well, I'm one of those kids that you will most probably hate because my life mostly consists of manicures and pedicures, gown fitting for charity events, dress rehearsals for fashion events where our family was invited to attend, business expos where my parents are guest speakers, and slumber parties with my "friends". I have a bodyguard everywhere I go, I have my own driver that comes with my luxury car. I also have my personal maid. I have these awesome stylists. I have these cool gadgets. I have my own room in our house that has everything I could ever expect in a paradise. Everything.

I have a life that every teenager dreams of.

We're also one of those families who lives in this fabulous, overly decorated, mansion, abundant in chandeliers. We have a gorgeous, massive fountain that will leave you breathless once you enter our compound. We have a giant, beautiful piano, and big antique portrait of my grandfather and my grandmother painted by the famous French artist in the 70s, Frank Auerbach, displayed in our living room. And we have a very long dining table with this elegant table setting, flowing with shiny silverware, where we eat on the opposite corners while our chefs prepare our food and the maids serve them.

We also like to spend our money on vacations in the most luxurious places (with a private jet, of course. They say it's for our protection, I didn't really care.) and have this big family reunions in fine dining restaurants, throwing parties in the most extravagant manner. At least that's all what the tabloid says, as if they have nothing better to talk about. But truth is, we have these things not because we want to just feel rich and flaunt our money to everyone, but because we're really just after the great service and great food and the quality living. You see, in living a very stressful life that my parents lead: paparazzi's, economic pressure, and competition, not to mention we have a high risk at being kidnapped, it's nice to feel pampered and protected every once in a while. As you know, my parents are one of the most prominent people in entrepreneurship. They just want to make the most out of what they have.

Yes, my parents are actually deep shit, rich and famous. But I'm really not. Surprising, isn't it? The world only knows about the fact that Mr. and Mrs. Paulsen of the Paulsen Industries have four daughters. That's it. Our faces never made it to the magazines or tabloids. It's amazing how my parents managed to avoid that. My parents always shielded us from the press and tried to give me and my sisters the most normal life they could ever afford to give. And for that, I am always grateful.

But no matter what they do I am still a Paulsen, and whether I like it or not, my life will never be normal.

Or at least that's what I thought.

* * *

It is my first day in school. I'm a little nervous- no. Scratch that. I AM FUCKING NERVOUS. It's not my first day in school generally, but it's my first day in THIS school. After that tragic accident my dad met nine months ago, my family had to make adjustments, financial ones, so I had to transfer school. At the time, I didn't care. I'm young. I never thought about leaving my friends and that I might never see them again. I never thought about leaving the school where I grew up. I never thought about leaving my paradise, our mansion. I never thought about saying goodbye to some of our most trusted house maids when they were let go. I never realized how this incident could change my life forever. I didn't even worry about my dad's life. I had no idea he was so close to death that time. I never understood how big this incident has impacted our lives. At the time, I was all focused on studying and having good grades and studying and studying and studying.

My life in my previous school was great. I was very active. I was the top of my class and I think I've done all kinds of things in school. School choir? Yep! Student council? Yes, I'm the president. Cheerleading? I'm in. Theatre? Oh dear, I always get the lead role. Sports? Taekwondo. I'm now a blue belter. Quiz contests? Yeah, that too. I win 'em all the time. I don't know how it feels to lose. I don't know how it feels to not get what I want. Everyone likes me, or at least they pretend to, because they have to. At this point, I don't know if they actually liked me, or if they're just afraid of me. As I have said, I belong in a wealthy family. So wealthy in fact, that we own majority of the stocks of the school. So yeah, my parents are fucking rich. They basically own the school. So, if you made Donna Evelyn Paulsen, the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Paulsen of the Paulsen Industries, cry? Be prepared to face the wrath of Mr. and Mrs. Paulsen, the great benefactors of the school.

Looking back, I ask myself, have I achieved these things because I am just that great? Or because my teachers were just too afraid to lose my parents as school benefactors, that's why they gave me all kinds of awards and opportunities in school and they made sure that I'm the top in the class and that I'm friends with everyone? I think, even if I had committed the worst violation in school (which I didn't), I wouldn't get kicked out for it, because kicking me out would mean them losing the benefactor of the school. Well, it doesn't matter now anyway, does it? After my dad met that accident, we had to sell our shares in the school because we need the money for his hospitalization, we couldn't afford it anymore, which forced me to transfer to a cheaper school. Of course, I have to. How can I go to school everyday thinking that all my classmates and teachers pity me because our family, who used to be the richest among the richest, has gone bankrupt? Well, we really didn't go completely bankrupt, that was an exaggeration. But you get what I mean. Luck just decided to be a bitch on us that time.

We still have the Paulsen Industries though. Selling the shares in my school and some of our other properties had a huge impact on our financial status, of course. But thank heavens Paulsen Industries managed to stay alive on our family's hands, barely breathing. That corporation has been through generations of the Paulsen clan. It would hurt like a bitch if we had to let that go, too.

* * *

I don't know anyone in this school. I don't know how the system works here. I have no idea how my day was gonna go. I don't know who I should talk to when I need help. I am completely alone. For the first time in years, I feel like a nobody.

I'm scared.

But I don't really have a choice so here I am. In our class room, sitting in the front row in the rightmost corner, waiting for the class to start. My very discreet bodyguard and my driver waiting for me outside the campus. We had to let go of my personal maid because we couldn't afford having her anymore. But the bodyguard and driver are necessary, so we couldn't fire them. And you know what, I think this could be good. A fresh start. No one knows my dirty little secret – that I'm THE Donna Evelyn Paulsen of the Paulsen Industries. I could just be myself here. I could achieve things on my own in this school, without having the shadow of my glorious name. I'm no longer Donna Evelyn Paulsen, the heiress of one of the most powerful business groups in Vancouver. (Well, I still am of course, people here just don't know that.) I'm now Donna. Just Donna. Donna version 2.0. You shall never see Donna version 1.0 ever again.

The class is supposed to start at 7. I looked at my gold vintage Rolex wrist watch (the one my grandfather gave me as a gift before he passed) and it says it's 6:45. I still have 15 minutes to get my shit together. Should I talk to my seatmate? Well no, she's busy talking to her other seatmate. And no one's sitting behind me. Maybe I should just prepare my notebook and pen, then.

I searched my bag for my notebook and pen, I dribbled stuff on my notebook to kill time. But holy shit, did my pen just ran out of ink? I took my pencil case to check if I brought an extra. I didn't. It's my first day in a new school and my pen ran out of ink and I didn't bring an extra. _Genius, Donna Paulsen. Greaaat start._

Holy fuck, it's 6:55, I need to find a new pen in 5 minutes. I know it's so petty to freak out about a pen, but cut me some slack, I'm new here. I'm a little tense. I have to be prepared for a battle.

I looked at my seatmate. I really should talk to her, right? She's done talking to that girl on her other side and she looks pretty nice. She probably won't bite. I hope to God she's nice enough to let me borrow an extra pen, if she has one.

"Uhm, hi." I said, very awkwardly.

She looked at me. She looks slightly confused, as if she's not sure if I really am talking to her.

"Hello." She smiled. Oh thank god she's nice.

"Hi. I'm really sorry, but do you have an extra pen? Mine just ran out of ink and I forgot to bring an extra."

"Oh." She looked quite disappointed. She was probably hoping I was gonna introduce myself and start a small talk.

"Wait, I'll check." She rummaged through her bag while I stared at her like a creepy dog. _Donna, you're the daughter of one of the richest people in the world and you're borrowing a pen from a stranger. You're pathetic._

"Here. I'm not sure if it still has enough ink, can you just check it?" she said as she handed me her pen.

"Oh, yeah. Of course, thank you." I said as I scribbled on my notebook again to check if the pen has ink. It has. Thank goodness.

"It's good. Thank you so much. Uhm-" I swallowed my saliva. "Do you mind if I borrow it the whole day?" I know I could just buy a pen at the school's bookstore, but I didn't want to get lost later searching for that place.

"Yeah, no problem."

"Thanks."

The school system here is different. I was used to the system where we go to different classrooms in different buildings one class after another. Here, we just stay put in one classroom for the whole day, and the teachers are the ones who transfer from one room to another every hour. So basically, this girl that I'm talking with, I'm gonna be sitting next to her the whole day. Great.

"Hey, what's your name?" I asked. I felt like I needed to start a small talk as a thank you for letting me borrow her pen. _Very brave, Donna. High five!_

"I'm Rachel. You?" Judging by her name and her looks, she's like one of those demure, but tough, pretty girls who can easily break a guy's heart mercilessly. She could be a bitch, if she wanted to. You wouldn't want to be on the wrong side of her. But I don't know, that's just my first impression.

"I'm Donna."

"Great. It's nice to meet you, Donna." She smiled at me.

"It's nice to meet you too." I smiled.

Rachel and I continued our small talk. It's nice, already having someone I could talk to. I told her I was quite nervous about today and she assured me that I'll be fine. And then, our teacher finally arrived. Well, he's okay. He introduced himself to us. Mr. Darby. He oriented us with the school's policies and stuff, class requirements, expectations on the subject. I religiously took notes while my classmates looked so bored.

"Oh and of course, it looks like we have a new student here." Mr. Darby looked at me.

Holy shit. This is it.

"Would you like to introduce yourself in front of the whole class?" he asked.

Uhm- no, thank you. I'm completely fine over here.

"Sure, sir." I said. I stood up, went in front of the class and I looked at Rachel, who was smiling at me, encouraging me. Oh thank God for this woman.

_Okay, Donna. Focus. You knew your teacher will ask you to introduce yourself in class today, you've prepared for this._

Inhale... Then go!

"Good morning everyone, I'm Donna Evelyn Paulsen. You can call me Donna."

Exhale...

Shit, yeah. That felt good.

"Hiii, Donnaaa." The entire class replied in chorus. Nice.

"Can you tell us more about yourself?" Mr. Darby asked.

"Well, I'm uhm- I'm 16. I'm from Vancouver, Canada. I just moved to Cortland very recently. I'm really looking forwa-"

And then, there he is. Standing. At the back, staring at me. His eyes. Wow.

Who is this guy?

* * *

**A/N: I'm pretty sure you know who the guy is. ;) We'll meet him next chapter. Also, a big shout out to the Darvey fandom on twitter! You know who you are. I was thinking of you guys every time I typed "Donna Evelyn Paulsen" in this chapter. Haha.**

**Also, there actually is a Paulsen Industries in Vancouver. I googled it. ;)**

**So yeah, there it is. My first Darvey fic. I've never written a fic before. And English is also not my first language. I hope I did it right! And I hope I piqued your interest. What do you think of Donna here? Is she out of character? Does she sound too braggy? ****Tell me what you think! I might just update really really soon depending on your reviews. :)**


	2. Chapter 2

**CHAPTER 2**

As I was speaking in front of the class, I was distracted by someone entering the classroom through the door at the back. Everyone noticed the change in my gaze and they turned their heads.

"Excuse me?-" Mr. Darby asked the man who just entered the room.

"Sorry sir, I'm late. I got lost." I'm pretty sure that's a lie. With the way he's smirking, he doesn't look like a guy who just 'got lost'. But wow, I am standing in front of the whole class with my voice and knees slightly shaking from the stage fright, but this guy just had the guts to smirk? That is some self-confidence you got there, mister.

The girls in class tried their best not to look so smitten while some of our classmates were looking at him trying to stifle their laughs. Looks like they had some inside joke with this guy. He clearly was enjoying himself what with all the attention directed at him.

"And you are?"

"Harvey Specter." He said. Very confidently.

"Ah. Of course. Take a seat Mr. Specter." Said Mr. Darby, quite wide-eyed when he heard 'Specter'. This guy is probably famous in campus. He is good-looking so that's not surprising. He's like one of those guys that everybody loves. Either that or they're just too afraid of him. He has this cool, really intimidating vibe. Oooh, looks like he's the male version of Donna 1.0.

"Yes, sir." He scanned the whole room, searching for a seat. The only free ones were my seat, of course, as I was standing in front of the class, and the seat behind me. Everyone stared at him as he stood there looking like a dashing prince charming searching for his damsel in distress. He saw the vacant seats, and proceeded to go and sit on one of them. He has now seated and- _oh wait, did he just sit on MY seat? _

_OH, HE DID. He IS sitting on MY seat. OH NO, sir. You're supposed to sit behind me, sir. I'm already friends with my seatmate. You can't- No. You do not get to sit there. __Are you dumb?! Can't you see I have my things there?! Seriously, ugh!_

I don't even know why I'm overreacting. It just really bothers me. Must be the control freak in me.

While I was mindlessly freaking out inside my head, I looked at Rachel, who's just staring at him, looking starstruck. He just winked at her and she's slack-jawed. Wow. What an over-confident douche this guy is. Rachel looked like she wanted to say to him that he just took someone else's seat, but she's too afraid. Oh, come on, Rachel!

Well, if she's not gonna do it, then I will.

"Uhm- excuse me, I'm sorry but that's my seat." I said, trying my best to sound polite. And the entire class gaped at me. Everything was like in slow-motion. I almost wanted to laugh when I saw their faces and they all looked… shocked. As if I did something completely forbidden, as if I just dropped the f-bomb in class.

What? That IS my seat. No one takes Donna Paulsen's seat.

I saw his facial expression change from shock to entertained. He looked down and saw my things on the desk and as if he just realized what he did, he said "Oh. Right! Right. I am so sorry." He stood up again and transferred to the seat behind mine. He smiled at me and nodded a little, like he is acknowledging the situation and he is in complete awe of what I just did. Wow. He's really pretty. _Ugh, stop it Donna!_

Rachel just kept switching her gaze from me to him, a little open-mouthed as she witnessed this staring contest between me and the pretty guy. There's tense silence. It's like there's this electricity flowing between us. I'm not sure if the whole class felt it, but I did. I definitely did. And he's just there smiling at me.

Mr. Darby cleared his throat. "Anyway, Ms. Paulsen would you like to continue?"

I nodded. But my knees won't stop shaking. _Damn it. Can't you just stop shaking for a second?_

"Uhm- Okay. So yeah. I'm Donna, I'm 16. I'm from Cortland. And I'm really looking forward to know you and spend the rest of the school year with all of you." I said, very quickly. _Lame, Donna! Lame! That is so not what you rehearsed last night in front of the mirror._

I looked at Mr. Darby not knowing what I should say next or if what I said is already good enough, and he understood my hesitation. "Okay. Thank you, Ms. Paulsen. It's nice to meet you. I hope you have a great time here in your new school."

I smiled at Mr. Darby and went back to my seat awkwardly. I hate this. This is the one thing I hate about being Donna 2.0. Where is my self-confidence? It used to be so effortless to talk in front of a bunch of people. I don't know what changed. It seems like when my pen ran out of ink earlier, my 'self-confidence pen' ran out of ink too.

Before I sat, I peeked a glance at him behind me and he's still smiling at me. Seriously, what is with this guy? If I didn't know any better I'd say he's a psycho, smiling at me for no reason. Maybe he's trying to be nice to me? I don't know. I don't care anymore.

* * *

Few more hours passed, and Rachel invited me to have lunch with her. It looked like she took pity on me because she knew I would have to eat my lunch alone in the cafeteria if she didn't invite me. She chose to have her lunch with me alone instead of with her other friends, maybe because she thought I'd get overwhelmed if they all joined me. I appreciated it. We went to the cafeteria and we ordered our food. We sat on the corner and proceeded to eat our lunch. I like this, a quiet lunch with Rachel where no one in the other tables gaped at me while I eat or talked about me. No one cares. I don't feel like an alien anymore. I feel like a chameleon. Blending in.

Bliss.

"So Donna, how's your day so far? Still alive?" Rachel asked, smiling knowingly.

I snorted. "Barely."

"Pretty intense moment you had there earlier with the great Harvey Specter, huh?"

"Oh my god, yes! You felt that too?!" I exclaimed in a harsh whisper while chewing my food.

"Donna, I think the whole class did."

"Oh god." I sighed and put my face on my palm. "I don't understand why that encounter was so awkward. Who the hell is he?!"

Rachel laughed.

"Oh Donna. You are in for a treat. He's the great Harvey Reginald Specter. Everybody either loves him or wants to BE him. He's the insanely hot football captain of the varsity team. Also, captain of the debate team. Top of the class. President of the student council. He's basically perfect, incredibly charming. Legendary. The dream of every girl in this campus..." Rachel kept talking, but my short attention span made my focus fly away from Rachel.

I was impressed. But not THAT impressed. After all, everything Rachel enumerated about this Specter guy, I did all those things too (and more) when I was in Vancouver.

But oh my god. He really IS the male version of Donna 1.0, isn't it? I hate Donna 1.0.

"Oh, and did I mention he's extremely hot?" Rachel continued.

"Ugh. Yuck. I already hate him." I did a fake grossed out expression.

"Ha! You say that now Donna, but let's see if you'll soon fall prey to his charm too."

"God, no. He looks like he's one of THOSE guys..."

"Donna. He's like the hottest guy in campus. And-"

"And let me guess, the great Harvey Specter is also filthy rich. Am I right?"

"Uh- no. Despite, what most people seem to assume about him, he's not."

_What? No? Really? I was certain he is._

"Really? But he had that rich bastard vibe." I echoed my thoughts aloud.

Rachel snorted. She dropped her spoon and fork and looked at me. She sighed. Oh dear, my interest has been piqued.

"Okay, listen. From what I know, he's only on a scholarship. He couldn't afford his studies. Being a member of the varsity team definitely helps, and being top of his class."

"His parents?"

"Divorced. Years ago. His father died last year. His mother… uhm- I don't know. It's quite tragic. He has a brother, by the way. Marcus Specter. Also very good-looking. Ugh. Harvey's supporting himself and his brother right now. Working student, you know."

_Oh. NOW, I'm impressed. A moment to process all these information, please. Thanks._

"Wow. Th- that's pretty hard, right? It's amazing he can handle it. Being a working student and managing to stay top of his class and the varsity and-"

"I told you, he's perfect."

"Oooh, I see someone has a crush on him." I raised my eyebrows at Rachel.

"Haha. No." She snapped back. Clearly not wanting to be categorized as one of THOSE girls.

"Well, you do know A LOT about him." I accused. Entertained about her change in demeanor.

"Those are pretty well-known information about him around the campus, Donna. Okay? And now that you know these information," she whispers, "use them wisely." She winked.

"Uhm- Okay? I don't know exactly what you mean Rachel but, okay."

"Right. We'll see." She smirks.

I really don't know what she's trying to say with that all-knowing smile of hers. But, whatever. Rachel and I continued to eat our meals while I processed the information I just got on the great Harvey Specter. Fine, I gotta admit it. Based from everything Rachel said, he's pretty amazing. Of course I'll have to confirm those information on my own. But I just realized, I was wrong.

Harvey Specter is not just the male version of Donna 1.0.

He is so much better.

* * *

**A/N: Next chapter, Donna and Harvey finally interact. Stay tuned! **

**And please review! I'd really love to know your thoughts on this. :)**


	3. Chapter 3

**CHAPTER 3**

After having my first lunch ever in this new world that I'm in, we went back to our classroom. It's now time for our Photography class. A certain Ms. Pearson is said to be our teacher. Rumor has it that Ms. Pearson is one of the scariest teachers in the campus. She's terror, but a very good teacher.

I cannot wait to meet her.

Rachel and I were among the first ones to arrive back in the room. When we came back, there's this guy sitting quietly in his seat. He seems to be playing with a gadget- _what is that? Is that a dictaphone?_

"Hey, Louis." Rachel greeted him.

"Oh hi, Rachel! How was your vacation?" He smiled at her.

"It was great! I just bookwormed the entire vacation. You?" She looked at what Louis was holding in his left hand. "Oh I see you have a new dictaphone there."

"Yeah I just bought it. I had to replace the old one." He inhaled deeply and looked like he was still mourning about his old dictaphone. "It broke in half."

_What the hell?!_

"What?!" Rachel echoed my thoughts aloud. "How did th-"

"Trust me when I say, you do not want to know how it happened." He interrupted her. "Good thing there wasn't anything important recorded in there when it happened. "Anyway, I recorded the entire thing with Harvey this morning. It's awesome. That douche." He giggled. He noticed I was standing behind Rachel entertained with their talk. "Oh hey there, Donna." He leaned on his right and waved at me. "I'm Louis, by the way." He's nice. I like him.

"Hi Louis, pleasure to meet you." I smiled.

"Likewise. I hope you're enjoying your first day here. This school year is gonna be great, I'm claiming it!" He said with conviction.

Oh I really hope it will be.

* * *

A few more minutes of little chit-chat with Louis then Rachel and I returned to our seats as my other classmates arrived and settled in their own seats too, ready for the rest of the class this afternoon.

A very beautiful lady entered the classroom. She carried herself with much elegance and class that there is no doubt that she's not a student. Her presence demands respect. You just know you have to really behave around her even without her saying a word. There is no doubt that she is THE Ms. Pearson that everybody fears and looks up to.

I already love her. To be honest, despite what most students feel, I appreciate those teachers who are very professional and strict provided that they're good at teaching rather than teachers who's just cool and hangs out with students all the time.

It's probably her eyes. The way she stares at her students, not in a creepy way but in a way that will demand your attention. It's like she's hypnotizing us with her stare that when you talk to her, she'll just leave you a stuttering mess.

"Good afternoon everyone." She addressed the entire class with authority. Oh this is gonna be interesting.

"I am Ms. Jessica Pearson. And this class is Photography 101." She questioned the class through her gaze. Some of my classmates nodded yes.

She proceeded to introduce us to her subject. It feels so weird having a professional and very serious teacher like her teach photography. I don't know but I've always imagined people who teach photography as carefree, happy-go-lucky, cool people. Not strict and terror like her. Although I remember Rachel said Ms. Pearson teach more subjects than just photography. Oh well, I guess we'll see.

"Everything you need to know about this course: outline of topics, class requirements, grading system, format for your submissions, references, is written here in your course syllabus." She handed out a pile of papers to the student in the corner and he then proceeded to get one and pass.

"Read it. If you have questions about it, you may ask me now." She went back to the teacher's table in front and sat on her chair. She gave us a few minutes to get a copy of the outline and read it.

"Questions?" She asked.

Harvey Specter raised his hand. "Do you give pop quizzes?" He asked.

"Oh I give them all the time, Mr. Specter. Always be prepared." She responded. Harvey nodded. Harvey must really be famous here, even Ms. Pearson knows him.

"Now, if you don't have anymore questions, let's proceed with your first assignment." What? An assignment already?!

"One of the topics that we will discuss next week, as you can see in your course outline, is the basic camera angles. So for your assignment, I want each of you to get a partner, and take a picture of any place here in campus applying one camera angle of your choice and then print it on a photo paper..." Ms. Pearson kept talking. The sound of notebooks being opened quickly, ballpens being clicked, and pages being turned is deafening as Ms. Pearson quickly explained the assignment. Our whole class immediately wrote down everything she said, except for one guy. He didn't even move, he just kept listening. Either he has a good memory or he's just too lazy to take notes. Or maybe both.

"As for the different angles that you may use, you can google it. Submission will be next week, Monday. That way, we'll have examples next week during our discussion. Is that clear?"

"Yes, Ma'am." The entire class said.

"Okay, I'll give you a few minutes to look for a partner and discuss your assignment."

The class became noisy as everyone talked to their seatmates asking if they want to be partners while Ms. Pearson just sat in her chair, observing us. I was about to ask Rachel if she could be my partner because of course, who else would I ask. But her other seatmate, Katrina, beat me to it.

"Hey Rachel. You want to be partners?" Katrina asked.

"Uhm, I-" Rachel hesitated, looking at me. She knew I was about to ask her too. She looked torn as she asked me with her eyes if I'd be okay. I just smiled at her and nodded at her. _It's okay Rachel, she asked you first. I can manage._ My eyes told her. She understood.

"Sure, Katrina." Rachel turned back to Katrina and smiled. And they began talking about the task.

_Okay then, Donna. I guess it's time to get to know your other classmates._ I sighed.

Since I was sitting on the corner in the front row, I only have two seatmates, Rachel on my left and the guy behind me, Harvey Specter. It's only logical that I ask him to be my partner, right?

_Oh just do it, Donna. Go!_

I turned my head and I looked at him. To my surprise, he's already looking at me. He probably witnessed my whole encounter with Rachel, and the whole debate I had inside my head if I should approach him or not.

"Do you-" "Hey, uh-" We said at the same time. It was awkward. He laughed.

"Uhm, sorry. You go first." I said nervously. Already having an idea what he's about to ask.

"Okay. Do you already have a partner?" He asked nicely, knowing I still don't have one but he asked anyway, trying to be unassuming.

"No." I shook my head. "You?"

"Nope." He said with confidence. "So, partners?" he pointed at us.

"Sure. Partners." I nodded.

"Great. I'm Harvey, by the way."

"I know." I nodded and gave him my all-knowing smile.

He looked a little shocked at my response but then he remembered about the seat incident this morning. "Oh right! You're Donna."

"Yes. Nice to meet you." I smiled.

"And you." He said, charmingly. That's odd. This morning I thought he was a douche but now, he's actually pretty nice to me.

"Okay. Uhm... So what now?" I asked.

He put his hands together and rubbed them as he pondered. "Hmmm… How about we do our research first on the topic and then after, we discuss which place here in campus would be best to take the pictures? What do you say?"

"Sounds good." I nodded at him.

"We can meet later in the library after class, we have computers there so we can use the internet to do research." he added.

"Okay. Oh also, I don't know where the library is, so can we just like, go together there later?" I hesitated.

"Yeah, sure. No problem. Let's just go together after class." He smiled. Oh that smile.

"Okay, then." I smiled too.

Woah. First day of school and I already have to stay after class. This year will be very busy and productive. I feel it.

Exactly after we finished our conversation, Ms. Pearson checked her watch and stood up. "Okay class, it's time." Our entire class stopped what we were doing and gave her our attention. "I will be expecting your photos next week. Oh and remember, you don't need to own an expensive digital camera to pass this course. I am not after the quality of the photo. What I am after is... methods being properly carried out, the use of perfect angles in capturing a photo, and your creativity." she paused. "I'll see you all tomorrow."

And with that, she took her things and gracefully walked to leave the room. Wow. What an exit. Is this how class sessions with Ms. Pearson gonna go every day? Interesting.

* * *

**A/N: Happy Suits Day! I really can't wait to see more Darvey today aaaaaahhhhh.**

**I just had to split this chapter in two parts. So next chapter: Harvey and Donna meet after class for their assignment. ;)**

**And thanks for the reviews so far. It's so great to see some of you guys appreciate this fic. I promise to do my best to update this fic as often as I can. More reviews to come I hope!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Since we're gonna have to wait two weeks for the next episode (ugh!), here's a much longer chapter compared to the previous ones. I hope you enjoy. :)**

* * *

**CHAPTER 4**

Every after class we have a ten minute break where we could go to the restroom, or the cafeteria, or just stay in the classroom to relax, chat with our classmates, until the next teacher arrives. Some of my classmates went to the restroom. Some just stayed put in their seats. Some went to the cafeteria to buy snacks. I chose to go outside the classroom and contact Jeff Malone, my bodyguard. I need to let him know that I have to stay for a few minutes after class so I could do my assignment with Harvey. Everyone in the security would panic like it's the apocalypse if I went off the grid even for a few minutes.

I clicked the number 3 on my speed dial. Number 1 and 2 were my parents of course, and number 4 was my driver, Ray.

"Hey Jeff? It's me." I said.

"Ms. Paulsen. What can I do for you?" Jeff asked in his deep voice.

Jeff and I are very close. He's like an older brother to me, and my childhood best friend. My first bodyguard was actually his father. And at the time, Jeff and I always hung around in our house and played a lot as kids. And he always called me Ms. Paulsen ever since. Mr. Malone was just waiting for Jeff to turn 18 so he could retire and Jeff could start working for us. And when he did, last year, he became my new guard. It was a little weird to have your childhood friend turn into your bodyguard, right? But I'd take it, there's nothing better than having a bodyguard who is also your best friend. I was very delighted. Their family has been very loyal to us through the years. They even flew to New York with us just to keep working for our family.

"Jeff, I'm sorry but I need to stay here for a few minutes after school, we have an assignment and my partner and I decided to do it in the library after class. Is that okay? It's just for a few minutes, I promise. An hour tops."

"That's okay, Ma'am. No problem. Let me know if you're done and we'll wait for you at the school entrance."

"Okay, I will. Thanks Jeff!" I said cheerfully.

"You're welcome, Ms. Paulsen."

"Jeff." I paused. "You really could just call me Donna, you know."

"Sorry, force of habit." He replied. I know he's smiling on the other line. That's always his response to me whenever I tell him to just call me Donna. He just won't do it. Probably has something to do with my Dad firing him if he didn't.

"Anyway, I gotta go. We only have a ten minute break. Our next teacher should arrive any minute now. Bye, Jeff."

"Bye, I'll see you later." I clicked my phone shut and went back inside the room where everyone is just eating snacks and talking to each other. I returned to my seat and put my phone in my bag.

"Hey Donna, you want some?" a voice from behind me asked. I turned my head and saw Harvey offering me a bag of chips.

"Uh- no. But thanks, Harvey." I smiled.

He frowned at me. "Let me guess, you're on a diet."

"Interesting. I just said no to you offering me a bag of chips and the first thing you assume that is is because I'm on a diet?" I asked him, acting like I was a bit offended. But I'm actually more of curious.

"What's wrong with that?" He countered, gesturing with his hand as he chewed with his mouth full of chips. "It makes sense. Aren't you getting hungry? It's been hours since lunch." He asked with a playful grin on his face.

"Hmm-" I frowned, really thinking if I indeed feel hungry. I don't. "Nah, I really don't feel hungry."

"Alright." He mumbled, shrugging his shoulders, sounding unconvinced with my answer. "These are really good chips though." He quirked his eyebrows at me and turned to take a seat.

"But..." I said, halting him from turning away. "I could try it if you say they're _really_ good." I said, reaching with my left hand for the bag of chips.

He laughed, amused. "Here you go." I glared at him mockingly and took some of the chips on my mouth. He's right. They're good.

"I told you they're good." He grinned at me. Am I that obvious?

"Oh it's just fine." I said, pretending like I didn't care about that heaven-sent chips.

"You're welcome." He smirked.

I rolled my eyes at him.

* * *

"Okay, class dismissed. See you all again tomorrow." Our last teacher said as the school bell rang and he walked out of the room. My classmates all stood up and arranged their things and little by little walked out of the room to go home.

_Yes, finally. Class is over. I survived the first day. I'm so tired. I just wanna go home and fall on my heavenly bed._

"Hey Donna, I have to go now. See you tomorrow?" Rachel smiled at me.

"Of course, see you tomorrow. Thanks for all the help today, Rach. Oh and your ballpen." I said as I gave her ballpen back. "Thanks again."

"No problem. See ya." She waved goodbye at me and walked out of the room.

I continued to arrange my things and I was about to text Jeff when-

"Donna, you ready?"

I looked behind me and saw Harvey standing, ready to go. _Oh! The meeting! Right! I forgot!_

A look of recognition passed through his face. "You forgot, didn't you?" he smiled knowingly.

"Uhm- A little bit. Yeah, I'm sorry." I looked at him sheepishly. "Anyway, yup I'm ready. Let's go." I said as I stood up and put my bag on my shoulders.

"The library is a little far from here. It's in the next building."

"Oh alright. We better get going then." I replied as we left the room and walked through the hallway of our floor. I got my phone to text Jeff that I'm on my way to the library.

"Is there someone waiting for you outside?" He asked as he noticed me texting someone.

"Uh- yes actually. My bod-" Oops, I forgot I couldn't call him my bodyguard. I cleared my throat. "My friend, he promised to fetch me after class today."

"Oh okay, we'll be quick."

"Alright."

There was awkward silence as we walked through the halls of our school. I kept thinking of a conversation-starter to stop the silence.

"It's your first day here right?" He asked. He probably sensed me panicking over the lack of conversation.

"Yes, it is." I replied.

"So? How is it? Do you like it here so far?"

"Yeah, of course. My seatmate Rachel is really sweet. Louis is very friendly, too. And also, you." I looked at him in the eyes and smiled genuinely at him. He smiled at me in appreciation. "I know it's gonna take some time for me to be completely comfortable in this new place. I mean, it's just the first day. Baby steps, you know? But so far everything is great."

"Good. What about your old school? In Canada, right? How is it there? I hear people are really nice there." He asked.

"Yeah, they're really nice. What they say on tv about Canadians are actually true." I chuckled. "It is very different there. The system, the people, the weather, are very different. I don't even remember feeling 'foreign' to that place. Ever since my first year in school, I've always studied there. So transferring here is a big move for me, you know?" I said as we turned to the left on our way to the library. He nodded in understanding. "How about you? Tell me something about you." I looked at him.

He frowned. "What exactly do you want to know about me?"

"I don't know. Hmm- I heard you're pretty popular here in school. Is that true?"

He pursed his lips. "I'm not sure how to respond to that."

"Oh come on! That's a classic Mr. Popular response." We laughed.

"Who told you that about me?" He asked.

"Oh I have my sources." I quirked my eyebrows at him.

"Sources. Which means… Rachel?"

"Hey! It may be my first day but Rachel's not the only person I know here." I snapped back. He laughed. I don't know, it's just the first day but I already feel comfortable around him. That's pretty weird considering he's Mr. Popular and I'm just a nobody here.

"We're here." He stopped walking and I saw him look straight ahead. I turned my head and saw what he was looking at. It's the Daniel Hardman library according to the classic nameplate displayed at the door. Just from the outside I could tell that I'm going to be shocked with what's waiting for me inside. The entrance just looked so mysterious.

Harvey probably sensed me standing there, frozen. "Donna?"

"Yeah?" I said as I still looked dazed at the name etched on the doors of the library.

"Uh- let's go inside?" I looked at him and saw him holding the doors open for me.

"Oh right! Sorry I was a little stunned with th-"

"Wait 'til you see the inside." He winked at me.

I walked in the room and was even more astonished with the massive shelves made of old dark wood and the strong, delightful smell of old books. The place is fucking _HUGE_. There are several students hanging out in the reading area and some students doing their research in the room with lots of Mac PCs. The librarian was just sitting in the corner stamping on books. The sound of pages being turned and mouse buttons being clicked is music to my ears. It's like one of those places in the Harry Potter movies except there are computers and there are no moving pictures hanging in the room. There is no magic here for sure, but the place looks magical to me.

I knew it. This is gonna be my new sanctuary in this school.

"Amazing, isn't it?" He whispered, looking at me.

"Oh, I love it!" I exclaimed excitedly.

"Ssshhh!" Harvey raised his finger to his lips to shush me. "Keep it down, Donna! The librarian is really strict here."

"I'm sorry!" I whispered harshly as I continued walking and saw a huge painting of Mr. Daniel Hardman, which is according to the label on the painting, is the first president of the school. The painting reminds me of my grandparents' in our house in Canada. Oh I miss our house there.

I kept walking while gawking at Mr. Hardman's magnificent painting until I collided with a reading table. "Argggh!" I cried out. The noise that I made was so loud that some of the students glared at me.

"Donna! Will you just focus on walking straight and not making any more noise?! You're gonna get us kicked out of here before we even start our assignment."

"I'm sorry! I'm sorry!"

"Come on, let's go to the computer area." Harvey led the way and I kept following him.

"There. There's a free PC in there." He said, pointing to the vacant PC in the corner of the room. We walked towards the PC and he turned it on. There was only one chair per PC unit so he took the chair from the other unit and offered it to me.

"Thanks." I said as I sat.

"Okay, so we need the basic camera angles, right?" He opened the browser and typed the words.

"Yup."

"Well this is easy. Bird's-eye view, Worm's-eye view, Neutral…" He said, scrolling through the google results.

"What would be the perfect place here in school where we could capture things with those angles?"

"There are a lot of places-"

"Let's think of the most unique place. I want our picture to stand out in class."

"Oh, a little competitive, huh?" He smiled.

"I just wanna impress Ms. Pearson." I shrugged.

"I actually understand that, I feel the same way." He paused, thinking. "How about, the school parking lot?"

"Hmm, I don't think so."

"School entrance?"

"Too easy?"

"Cafeteria?"

"Bad lights."

"Library?"

"Maybe. Yeah, that could be. This place is pretty awesome."

"Oh!" He snapped his fingers. "I just thought of a perfect place."

"What?" I said, wide-eyed.

"The rooftop." He paused for effect. "Donna, that place is beautiful we should take the pictures there."

"But- are you sure we're allowed to-"

"No need to worry about that, I'm friends with the guard there." He smirked.

I paused as I debated in my head if that was really a great idea. Oh, but I really want to see the rooftop! That would be a great opportunity to explore this school. And I'm sure we'll be able to present a unique photo in class because my classmates won't even think of going to there. Besides, if he says it's okay, then it's most probably okay that we go there.

"Come on, Donna. It will be great." He nagged at me.

"Okay, then. Rooftop it is." I smiled.

"Rooftop it is." He smiled.

Oh, this will be fun.

* * *

**A/N: Thank you so much guys ****_(AJ, MIA, lafantomette, housemaniac21, AnonymousW)_**** for the reviews! Seriously, your reviews fuel me. I'm so overjoyed! Keep them coming. Chapter 3 was just a filler chapter and I'm glad you still enjoyed it.**

**_AJ_****_,_**** yep you're right! It was Mike. Glad you got that reference. And thank you for your wonderful review. I smiled like an idiot after reading it.**

**I originally planned to have Louis as Donna's bodyguard because I really loved the Donna/Louis friendship, but I realized Louis is not "fit" for the role. LOL! So I chose Jeff instead. What do you think?**

**Also, I've started writing Chapter 5. And I gotta say, that's my favorite chapter so far. So stay tuned!**


	5. Chapter 5

**I'm sorry if this came out a little late, I kind of lost inspiration to write lately. Here's a much longer chapter to make up for it. Hope you like it!**

**New episode this week! Yay! Not sure if it's the Darvey flowers episode already, but I hope it is!**

* * *

**CHAPTER 5**

After planning about the assignment with Harvey, we agreed to do the 'photoshoot' the next day after class. I volunteered to bring the camera since I have a Nikon DSLR at home.

When I got to the school entrance, my eyes immediately fell on my black car with Jeff standing outside, dressed in a black suit, looking for me. D_onna, you should really tell him that he should NOT look like that while he's waiting for you if you want to stay out of the spotlight._ His eyes fell on me as I walked towards him and he smiled.

"Hello, Ms. Paulsen." He greeted me as he opened the car door for me.

"Hi, Jeff. How was your day?"

"Pretty uneventful." He answered. "You? How's first day?"

"Same. It was tiring though. I just wanna go home and get some rest."

"Of course." He said as I got inside the car and he closed the car door for me. He also got inside the car and sat in the front seat. We buckled our seatbelts and Ray drove us home.

It was just a short 20-minute drive from my school to our house in Cortland. Ray, Jeff, and I made small talk while we were on our way. I looked out the window and saw the stunning view outside. This place is filled with huge 1900s Victorian homes, brown-stones, and contemporary houses. There are lots of colorful bars and restaurants that I would love to try someday. I certainly know this place is full of hidden gems, unknown places, and things to do!

When we finally arrived, Ray pulled over at the entrance of our beautiful house. Our house here in Cortland is not as extravagant and luxurious compared to our house in Vancouver, but it still is extremely fancy. It is very modern, very black and white, and minimalist. High ceilings, sleek flooring, pin lights, and glass walls surround the house to give a lot of light. It looks so sterile but I feel comfortable here. Unlike our house here, our house in Vancouver has more of a vintage, Victorian era feel to it, full of glorious chandeliers and antique furniture.

To be honest, until now I can't decide which of the two houses I prefer. They're both perfect for me.

"By the way," Jeff leaned back to face me. "Your dad thought that it would be a great idea if I join you in class." He said as he unbuckled his seatbelt and moved to get out of the car.

"What?" But Jeff didn't hear me.

"Jeff! Wh- What did you say?!" I asked, confused as he opened the car door for me and I got out. Ray waited until I have taken my things and Jeff have closed the car door before he proceeded to park the car in the garage and left Jeff and I in the house entrance talking.

Jeff sighed, "Your dad wants me to go to school with you, so you'll be protected inside the school too. We'll be classmates. It's very easy to arrange that, you know. No need to worry. We can effortlessly request to assign me in your section. Mr. Paulsen says he's willing to pay my tuition fee for me…" Jeff kept rambling about the plan. He talked really fast. I think I heard something about the school still accepting late enrollees, but I just don't want to hear any of it.

"Uh- Jeff," I said, interrupting him. "I really like you, you're my friend. But a bodyguard, in school? Really?" He pursed his lips and shrugged his shoulders, empathizing with me. "Ugh. I need to talk to my dad." I said, now irritated.

I went inside our house with Jeff walking three steps behind me, must be protocol or something, and I immediately saw my dad in the living room reading the newspaper while the maid served him coffee. My dad looks like George Clooney with his salt and pepper hair, looking regal as he just sat there.

His eyes brightened when he saw me, "Hey Donna, how was your first day in school?" He smiled.

"Dad! Really?! A bodyguard? In my class?!" I exclaimed, furious, as I put my things on the big couch next to my dad and I stood there waiting for his answer.

"_Hi Dad. My first day in school was great. I enjoyed it a lot._ Wow, that's good to hear Donna." He answered flippantly, imitating my voice. I huffed at him.

"This is serious Dad. Where's Mom?" I asked, knowing she will defend me on this one. Like she always does. I love my mom.

"No need to find your mom to defend you, sweetheart. She actually agrees on this."

"When are you planning on telling me this, Dad? If Jeff hadn't told me earlier I would have never known."

He sighed. "I was waiting for the last details to be straightened out before I tell you. I've said this before and I'll say it again. It's for your own good, Donna."

"I know that Dad, believe me. I do. And I appreciate that. But don't you think we're kind of exaggerating here?" I reasoned out. I paced in our living room while I continued my rant. "I mean, what could possibly happen inside my school? I can't be myself, I can't feel normal, if I know there are eyes watching me all the time. No offense, Jeff." I looked at Jeff who is standing in the corner of the living room, hearing everything.

"None taken." He shook his head and smiled at me.

I turned my gaze back to my dad. "Dad, in Vancouver, you didn't have Jeff's dad be with me inside the school. What changed now?"

Dad stood up, towering over me, "What changed now Donna, is that at that time your bodyguard was 20 years older than you. Jeff here is almost your age, just three years older than you, so working undercover wouldn't be a problem anymore. And it would be a good opportunity for Jeff here," he pointed his hand with a mug of coffee at Jeff, "to continue his studies."

"As for your previous school, everybody in your school in Vancouver knew you were my daughter. They all knew that I have the power to kill them if something ever happened to you. Every person in that school served as your bodyguard, Donna. Think about it."

I took a seat beside my dad and I turned, facing him. "Okay, I get that. But at least have Jeff in a different section." Geez, my mouth just wouldn't stop. "Again, no offense Jeff."

"Again, none taken, Ms. Paulsen." Jeff replied.

My dad inhaled deeply before he spoke. "If I transfer Jeff in another section then what's the whole point of this? Don't you understand? In Vancouver I have the power to protect you. I don't have that power anymore here in New York, Donna." He said, a little exasperated. "Getting Jeff to be your classmate here is like hitting two birds with one stone."

"But dad-"

"Please. This conversation is over, Donna." He put his right palm up, halting me. "Your mom and I have talked about this. This will be good for you." He said as he stood up to leave the room and kissed the top of my head on his way while I stayed there with my thoughts.

I love my dad. I totally understand his point, and I wouldn't be so against it if we were still in Canada. All this time I thought my life can be normal again. I was really excited to experience how it feels to be out of the spotlight. I guess all those dreams are now useless.

Jeff cleared his throat. "Ms. Paulsen, if you don't mind," Jeff walked towards me. "I think this will be good too. We can be study buddies." He said, as he stood behind the couch, trying to lighten up my mood. "It's just me, you know. I'm your friend, you can trust me."

I sighed. "Yeah, I do. I do trust you, Jeff." He smiled. "We'll have to be very discreet though, please. I don't want my classmates finding out I have a bodyguard undercover in class. I'll seem more alien than I already am to them."

"Don't worry. I'm always discreet, Ms. Paulsen." He said, standing a bit straighter.

"Jeff, you do realize you cannot call me "Ms. Paulsen" or "Ma'am" in class anymore right?"

Jeff whispered. "Yes. I know that, _Donna_. God, it just feels so weird calling you that."

"Oh, you'll get used to it." I said as I stood up and took my things. "Thank you, Jeff."

"No problem." He replied.

"So how are you gonna arrange this whole thing? Your enrollment, your section…" I asked.

He answered smugly as he put his hands in his pockets, "It's already been arranged today. That's what I did the whole day in school. I can go to class tomorrow."

"Ugh." I rolled my eyes at him and he chuckled.

"Donna, you do realize I have to come with you at the rooftop tomorrow, right?"

"What? Are you crazy?! Harvey will be suspicious if you come there with us. He might find out you're my bodyguard!"

"I don't care. It's my job to make sure you're out of danger." He stares at me.

"Harvey and I are doing our assignment in the rooftop, what could possibly happen to us in there?!" I'm freaking out. This is getting out of control.

"It's not the both of you I'm worried about, it's just you. You've only known Harvey for two days, who knows what he's into." He shrugged.

"Oh my god! This is unbelievable." I put my hands on my forehead because I feel like it's going to explode.

"It'll be fine, Donna. If he asks, I'll say that I'm a family friend and that I'll be hitching a ride with you so I'll just hang out at the rooftop while you guys do the assignment. That's not a lie."

"No, Harvey said there's a guard in there, too. We'll be fine." I pointed out.

"Who knows what that guard's into? They could be conspiring to kidnap you tomorrow for all I care."

"You're being paranoid!"

"It's my job to be paranoid."

"Well then, I hate your job."

"You really want to be alone with him, do you?" He smiled suggestively.

"What?! No!" I shrieked.

"It's okay, Donna. I understand if you have a crush on him. He IS pretty charming." He raised his eyebrows at me. Jeff calling me Donna now is a little disorienting, not to mention him suggesting that I like Harvey. This is ridiculous.

"Jeff! Stop it! No. I don't have a crush on him." I slapped him a little in the arm. He laughed. "Wait a minute- you _know_ him?" I asked.

"I did background checks on all your classmates." He said like it's the most obvious thing in the world.

"OH MY GOD!" I almost want to slap him. In the face this time.

He turned serious and looked me in the eye. "Donna. You'll be-"

"Fine. Yeah, I know." I sighed, giving up. This is too much to process in one day. I was never gonna win this anyway.

"Go. Get some rest. I know you're tired. I'll see you tomorrow, _classmate_." He said smirking.

"Ugh. I hate this." I said as I turned and walked away from a laughing Jeff.

* * *

I went to my room upstairs and immediately collapsed on my heavenly bed. I closed my eyes for a few minutes and cleared my mind. My bedroom is my favorite place in our house. My sanctuary. The only room in this planet that offers me 100% privacy. You might be surprised, but my room actually doesn't look like those kinds of girl's rooms where everything is pink and fluffy, and butterflies and fairies and teddy bears are everywhere. I don't have a bed with pillars and a mosquito net draped over it.

What I have, is a beautiful room with plain white walls and study desk and shelves made of dark brown wood where all my medals and trophies are displayed. A mix of white and brown, thin curtains draped over the window, covering the beautiful view of our swimming pool and garden. A bed with pure white pillows and sheets and a thick white quilt with table lamps on each side of the bed. A beautiful painting above the brown headboard, and a black flat-screen TV attached to the wall adjacent to my bed. A huge mirror beside my dresser with lights on each side, my make-up set arranged on top of the table by the mirror. I have just learned how to apply make-up with all the events my family have to attend. And the most important, my most favorite, the collection of framed pictures of me and my family and friends (in Canada) displayed on top of my dresser. That's my favorite thing to look at all the time. I'm hoping to add more pictures there soon.

I inhaled deeply, enjoying the soothing smell of my room and I opened my eyes slowly. "I could just stay here forever." I said out loud.

"No, you can't dear." A lovely elegant voice said.

_You didn't lock the door, Donna. Dammit._ I lifted myself up and leaned on my arms bent behind me and saw my mom standing by the door, smiling. She always looked so gorgeous and sophisticated.

"Hi mom." I said, smiling at her tiredly.

"Hello, sweetheart. Do you want to come have dinner with us downstairs?" She asked as she walked gracefully to my bed and sat beside me.

"I'm not hungry. I'm sorry mom, I'm so tired. Is it okay if I just go to sleep already?"

"That's okay. I would ask how your first day was but I could see you're really exhausted."

"Yeah. It was a great first day though. I made new friends." I replied. "I'll tell you more at breakfast tomorrow."

"Sure. Go change first before you sleep though. I'll see you tomorrow." She said as she kissed my forehead and stood up to leave the room. She smiled at me as she closed the door. I smiled back.

I didn't get a chance to change my clothes though as I immediately fell asleep after my mom left my room.

* * *

It's my second day in school. Jeff Malone walked awkwardly beside me as we strolled through the halls of our school in search for our room. He said it was because he used to walk three steps behind me all the time and having to walk beside me now can be a little unnerving. But I think it was really because he's just nervous about going to class. Suffice it to say, it was my turn to say _"You'll be fine, Jeff."_

We finally arrived at our room and I saw a new set of table and a chair placed at the back. I was certain that's for Jeff. I told him he could sit there and he did. I went to my seat in front and saw Harvey already in his place chatting with his seatmate. He looked up when he felt my presence and smiled at me.

"Hey." He greeted, sitting a little straighter.

"Hey, Harvey. I see someone didn't get "lost" in school this time." I said jokingly, referring to the incident yesterday as I sat.

"Oooh. I see someone is a lot more cheerful now than yesterday."

"Well, that's because someone isn't sitting in the wrong seat anymore."

He leaned in, put his arms at the back of my chair and tapped me on the shoulder. "But then I saw someone came to school today with some guy. Who is he?"

"My brother." I shrugged.

He snorted. "You really think I'd believe that?" He looked from me to Jeff.

"It was worth a shot."

"Is he your boyfriend?" He whispered, raising his eyebrows cheekily.

"Why? Are you jealous?" I whispered back, smiling. I do feel kinda bold today.

"Me, jealous? Nah." He made a face. I looked him in the eye and I realized that our faces are just inches apart now. I moved back a little.

"Well, it is none of your business." I said smugly, still whispering.

"You know, 'none of your business' usually means yes." He said as he moved away from my chair, probably sensing my awkwardness.

_This could be a good cover story when Jeff has to come with us at the rooftop this afternoon._ I thought to myself. Better if I won't confirm nor deny it, keep things ambiguous.

"By the way, he said he wants to join us at the rooftop this afternoon. He wanted to see the view too."

Harvey was a little taken aback, but he immediately recovered. "Of course. We don't want the boyfriend to get jealous." He smirked.

"Right." I said, going along with him.

I immediately texted Jeff after my talk with Harvey.

**_Jeff, I just told Harvey you'll join us this afternoon. Something about not wanting the boyfriend to be jealous was mentioned._**

_**Woah. What happened to 'just a family friend'? Haha.** _He texted back.

**_I didn't say it, he just assumed. I didn't deny it._**

**_It would be less suspicious that way. Yeah okay, I get it._**

"So, he's from Canada too?" Harvey asked as he looked from me to Jeff. I looked at Jeff too and saw him fiddling with his phone. I know Jeff's aware that we're staring at him.

"Yeah, he just arrived yesterday so he wasn't able to make it to class." I replied without meeting his gaze.

"Ah okay."

And with that, our conversation was over. Our teacher arrived and the day has officially started.

* * *

**A/N: Longest chapter yet. I think you already have an idea what happens in the next chapter. *wink***

**I think the pacing of the story is too slow (I wrote 5 chapters that covers only Donna's first day, for crying out loud!), don't you think? But I'm still in the process of establishing the characters and their back stories since this is AU. Don't worry, the pacing will become much faster soon enough. We'll have more Darvey moments in the coming chapters.**

**If you have any ideas on what you would want to see in this story, just leave a review and tell me! I'm running out of ideas and I'll try to incorporate yours if I can. :)**


	6. Chapter 6

**CHAPTER 6**

"Harvey, are you sure we're allowed up there?" Jeff asked as we climbed up the stairs of the fire exit on our way to the rooftop. I'm getting a little claustrophobic as I was sandwiched between the two guys, Harvey in front of me and Jeff at my back.

"Yeah, I'll do the talking with the guard. We'll be fine."

"You know, I exercise a lot but this is strangely tiring me out." I said as I adjusted my back pack behind me. I tried to breathe deeply but the fire exit has this usual stuffy, suffocating air. I coughed a little.

Harvey noticed, "You okay? We're almost there."

"Donna, let me carry your bag." Jeff said. Harvey and I both looked down at him. I don't know why I was a little shocked, Jeff has been a gentleman ever since.

"I'm fine Jeff, thank you. We're almost there, right?" I looked back at Harvey and he nodded. He looked a little out of place.

Few more minutes of climbing up the stairs, and we reached the end of the fire exit. We entered and saw a lady sitting on the opposite side of the rooftop door.

"Hi Bertha, how are you?" Harvey greeted her endearingly.

"Specter." She said in her cold southern accent, recognizing Harvey. "What are you doing here?"

"This is Donna." He said pointing at me. "And this is Jeff. We were just gonna take some pictures at the deck for our photography assignment if that's okay." He smiled.

"Uh-huh." Bertha said, skeptical.

"Come on, Bertha. It's me." Harvey gave her his trademark smile. "Oh also, somehow these cookies made it into my bag. I honestly don't know how they got here." He said as he picked out a box of cookies out of his back pack and gave it to Bertha. "Would you mind taking them?" He smirked at her.

She took the cookies, acting unimpressed. "Alright, Specter. But make sure you don't do anything stupid in there. I'll be right here outside. You know what to do with the rod?"

"Yup. Thanks Bertha." Harvey said as we walked towards the door of the rooftop deck.

I tapped him lightly on the shoulder and whispered, "Didn't know you brought cookies. You could've shared them with us you know."

"Oh you don't think I saved up some for ourselves?" He winked.

"Nice." I patted him on the shoulder. "She doesn't look pleased that we're here though." I whispered to him as Jeff tried to open the door.

"She's always like that. Nothing to worry about. By the way, we call her Big Bertha in campus but she doesn't know that."

"Oh I think she knows." I said, peaking at Bertha who was still staring at us while Jeff opened the door.

Jeff grunted as he pushed the filthy door at the rooftop deck, "Wow, this door is-"

"Yeah, this door's shit. You have to keep this rod stuck in there to stop it from closing." Harvey said as he picked up a long rusty rod and placed it in between the door and the door frame.

The rooftop was so huge. It's like thrice the size of our classroom. The place looks a little grimy but it is tolerable. We all went to the corner to put down our bags and see the view.

"Woah, look at that." Jeff said, inhaling the fresh air, admiring the view. The view was truly spectacular. We could see the whole campus, the gymnasium, the football field, swimming pool and lots of other huge buildings. On the other side, we could see the highway with cars passing through. Not to mention, the beach few miles away from school. We could hear the birds chirping, wind rustling through the trees, and laughter as students played football in the field.

"Oh wow, it's beautiful up here." I said.

"Yeah." He said, looking at me. "Imagine what this place looks like at sunset."

Harvey let us take in the view for a few moments before he clapped his hands and said, "Okay, first things first." He then took out the cookies he brought and offered it to Jeff and I.

"Thanks!" I said, taking one giant cookie. "Oh this is so- where did you get this?" I mumbled as I ate the cookie.

"I made it."

"Woah-"

"I _know_." He said proudly and cocked his eyebrows.

_Ego alert!_ I snorted. "I was going to say, 'Woah, it tastes so bad.'" I rolled my eyes at him.

"Well, your face said the opposite."

I was going to snap back but Jeff interrupted us. "Hey, I'm just gonna stay there on the other side while you two do your thing. Alright?"

"Okay." I nodded.

"We better start." Harvey said, rubbing his palms. "Where's your camera?"

"Right here." I said as I took the camera out of the bag and gave it to him.

"This is awesome." He commented as he played with the DSLR. "I've always wanted to buy one of these. But they're too expensive."

"You know, there are a lot of cheaper digital cameras now that can take pictures, same quality with a DSLR." I said matter-of-factly.

"Yeah but, I don't know. I guess I like the 'photographer feel' that comes with using a DSLR."

"Hmm, I actually get that. Well, you can borrow mine in the meantime." I offered.

"Thanks." He smiled. "Hey, will he be okay over there?" He said as he cocked his head towards Jeff, standing in the opposite corner of the deck with his back facing us, just taking in the view.

"Don't worry about him, he'll be fine."

"Alright. Let's go over there, the view is better there." Harvey said, pointing to the area of the rooftop without shade. Oh, this will not be good for my skin.

We walked towards the area and I hissed a little as I felt the sun hit my skin. As a natural redhead, the sun is my worst enemy.

"Wow, Donna. Your hair-"

"What?" I asked, touching my hair, suddenly feeling very self-conscious.

"It's so… red." He said, looking like he's in awe. He's really staring. I remembered my hair looks like it's on fire when I'm under the scorching sun. He looks like he wants to touch it but knows that I'll most likely punch him in the face if he did. Fellow gingers will understand this. You know our hair changes color from time to time depending on the light, right? But it's just hair, which happens to be red.

"Well thanks, Captain Obvious. That's usually what happens if you're a-"

"A redhead-"

"A ginger." We said, simultaneously. A startled look passed between us. He laughed.

"Right." He's still staring at my hair. Please don't.

"We're a pretty rare bunch now these days, you know." I said while I tried to look somewhere else. I just couldn't look at him. His stare is too much, I'm getting really self-conscious.

"Yeah, you are." He replied. I looked him in the eye. He said it very profoundly. _I don't want to assume but, is he hitting on me? My fake boyfriend is in the other side and he's hitting on me?_

"We have to do this really fast though, my skin will hurt like a bitch and a million freckles will miraculously appear later on my face if we stay here longer." I tried to deflect.

"But I love freckles, I think they're beautiful." He said. And then, he does that Specter smile that makes your ovaries want to weep.

_Oh dear god, Donna Paulsen. You are in big trouble, sister._

* * *

I scanned through the photos on the laptop in my bedroom that night. I don't know if Harvey is really good at taking photos or the view is just really beautiful. The photos he took were all fantastic. Of course, I didn't tell him that, the man already has an ego the size of an ocean. There was one specific photo though that really caught my attention...

_"Hey, you realize this is your first assignment in this school, right?" he said._

_"Yeah, so?"_

_"It's also your first time here in the rooftop. This is an important occasion." He paused for effect. "We should take a selfie!" He said as he raised both of his hands holding the camera. I have this automatic reaction of smiling at the camera when someone points it at me so I did. I was standing a little behind him and was leaning towards his left shoulder._

I looked at our picture with the beautiful view in the background. It's not really a picture frame-worthy material but like he said, it was an important occasion. We were both smiling widely at the camera, my hair looks like it's having a good hair day and his Cheshire cat grin was so huge it looked as though his face would crack in two. The picture is cute. Harvey looks really adorable.

_Oh stop it, Paulsen!_

* * *

"Has everyone submitted their photos?"

"Yes, Ma'am." The class answered in chorus.

"Good. Now, I have something important to tell you, so listen up," the entire class straightened up out of habit, "You know class, if there is only one thing that I hope you learn in this school it's that it is very important that you give your best in everything you do. Even the simplest things. You'll never know, a simple action might bring you a huge opportunity in the future. For instance…"

Ms. Pearson raised her hand showing us a poster for a… conference?

"This is a poster invitation for the 2014 Society for Photographic Education Conference which will be held next month in California. The school administrators wants to have two students from your batch to represent the school in this conference." Ms. Pearson cocked her eyebrows at us as she continued talking. Her stare leaves us all quiet. "And they have appointed me to choose which students to send to California. As your photography teacher, I've decided to choose the delegates based from the photos you just submitted. So I hope you did your best in that homework because whoever gets the highest grade in that assignment will be representing the school in the conference."

"Wow." I whispered to myself.

"I should be done evaluating your deliverable by the end of the week… or earlier." She went back to the teacher's table and arranged her things.

"That's all. See you tomorrow." She said as she left the room.

I sighed as Ms. Pearson closed the door, "She always leaves the room with a flare."

"I know right?" Rachel heard me and chuckled.

"She makes it look like this conference is a big deal." I looked at Rachel, "Well, is it?"

"Well yeah. It might not be relevant in the future but you could still put that in your resume. Besides, the school includes extra-curricular activities in evaluating the top ten students of the batch. If you want to be in the top ten, it's not enough that you do well in acads, you have to be active in the school activities too. And this conference will give you big points since it's national-level. Not to mention, you get to go to California… for free."

"For free?"

"Yeah! When the school sends delegates to places, they take care of all the expenses. They have to." I have been to California many times so it's not a big deal, but Rachel got me at top ten. Getting in the top ten is a huge deal for me. I don't want my parents looking all gloomy at the end of the school year because I didn't get an award.

Rachel leaned in to me and whispered, "So if Ms. Pearson chooses your work, you get to go to California with Harvey Specter." She giggled excitedly.

"Oh no." My eyes widened at the realization. "But come on, I'm sure you and our other classmates submitted great works too."

"Don't play the humble card, Donna. It's been a week in school and so far, you and Mr. Heartthrob are the most active in class. I wouldn't be surprised if you guys are the top 2 of the batch."

Harvey tapped me on the shoulder, interrupting my talk with Rachel. I turned to face him, "I really want this opportunity. You think Ms. Pearson will choose our work?" he whispered.

"Well, it's best not to get our hopes up Harvey."

"Oh but I really want to go to California! I've never been there." He groaned in frustration. "Besides, I really think we did great in that assignment. We're the only ones who took pictures in the rooftop."

I shrugged and smiled at him, "We'll see Harvey."

* * *

A few more days passed and the SPE Conference was never brought up again. Until one day, Ms. Pearson returned our assignments with our scores and comments written at the back of the photo. She gave the photo to me since I'm nearer to her than Harvey. I looked at the back of the photo and smiled at the A+ scrawled on it. And to my surprise there was a note written below it.

_**Congratulations, Mr. Specter and Ms. Paulsen. Your assignment got the highest score. You'll be representing the school in the SPE Conference. Please see me at my office asap so I can talk to both of you about the details.**_

I flipped the photo rapidly to hide the note. I didn't want to make a big deal out of it. But in my mind I was screaming. HOLY SHIT!

"Donna, why are you being so quiet?" I stared at Rachel wide-eyed and a look of recognition passed over her face. "Oh my god, you got it didn't you?!"

"Rachel! Ssshhh! Oh my god-"

"Hey, how was it? What's our score?" Harvey leaned in on my shoulder to ask me.

"Harvey, let's talk outside." I said as I took the photo on my desk and walked quickly out of the room not waiting for Harvey's response. I looked Jeff in the eye on my way. I paced in the hallway while I waited for Harvey to come out.

"What's up Donna?" Harvey asked, confused.

I flipped the photo and showed him the note Ms. Pearson wrote. "We did it, Harvey. We're going to the conference."

It took him a few seconds to process it, "Holy shit! We did it! YES! We're going to California, Donna!" He jumped and raised his hand for a high-five. We high-fived and I laughed weakly at his excitement.

"You don't look so happy Donna." He noticed.

"I'm freaking out actually." I murmured as I continued pacing in the hallway. "I don't think my parents would allow me to go to this conference."

"Why not?" He asked, the look of excitement now completely gone from his handsome face.

"I have very strict parents." I sighed and kept walking in the hallway back and forth.

"Okay, Donna. Hello? Donna? Stop walking!" I halted and he stared at me. "You know, I think you're worrying too much. Ask them first before you worry about this."

"He's right, you know." Harvey and I both turned our heads and saw Jeff Malone walking in the hallway with his hands in his pockets. Was he there the whole time?

"Right, Jeff! You're the boyfriend. I'm sure you know Donna's parents." Harvey said awkwardly.

"Yeah. I know them very well." Jeff casted a meaningful glance towards me. "Don't worry, Donna. Talk to Ms. Pearson first and find out all the details of this trip. Then we'll talk to your parents tonight."

* * *

"Come on in." Harvey and I both heard Ms. Pearson as I knocked on the door of her office three times.

"Hi Ms. Pearson." Harvey said.

"Oh good, you're both here." She said, closing a folder on her desk. She leaned towards her desk and put her hands together, "First of all, congratulations to the both of you."

"Thank you Ma'am."

"Now, let's talk about this trip. The trip will be on August 22nd to 25th. Of course we would need both your parents' consent on this first before we could proceed on this trip so here's a formal letter that you should have your parents sign by the end of the week." She said as she handed us a letter sealed in a white envelope. "Every detail about the trip is in that letter. If they approve, you're good to go. If not, then I will have to choose the second highest scorer in class. You need to submit this letter asap so if ever you weren't allowed to go to the trip, I could find someone else to go."

We both nodded our heads as Ms. Pearson continued her briefing.

"The trip will last for 4 days. The first three days will be dedicated for the conference, and the last day will be your flight back to New York."

"Your? You're not coming with us, Ms. Pearson?" I asked.

"No, I'm not. I'm the head coordinator for this trip but Mr. Darby was chosen to accompany the both of you since he's more familiar with the place than I am. Mr. Darby also said that if time permits, you would have a short tour in Los Angeles on the last day before you head to the airport."

"This is so cool." Harvey said excitedly.

"As for the expenses, all expenses - the air fare, the hotel – will be shouldered by the school. Except food. You will have to bring your own pocket money for your food. Ms. Paulsen, you will have your own room since you're the only female in the trip. Mr. Darby and Mr. Specter will share a room in the hotel." I almost wanted to laugh when I saw Harvey grimace at that.

"But your rooms are situated next to each other. Do you have questions?"

"Uhm- what exactly are we going to do in this conference, Ms. Pearson? Is there a contest? Do we present something, do we have to bring anything?" I asked.

"What you're going to do in that trip is listen to all the speakers, participate in the activities, mingle with the other delegates, and _learn_. I might ask the both of you to share to the class what you learned when you come back. And all you have to bring is your camera. Aside from your personal things, of course. Do you still have questions?"

"None." Harvey looked at me and waited for my reply.

"None." I said.

* * *

"It's gonna be fine Donna, I got your back." Jeff patted me on the back as we both entered our house after school. As usual, we saw my dad sitting on the couch in the living room, reading a newspaper. It has always been his routine to chill in the living room in the afternoon.

"Hi Dad."

"Hey sweetheart. How's school?"

I sat on the sofa with an umph and faced him, "I have good news."

"Really? What is it?" Dad straightened up, his interest piqued.

"My classmate and I were chosen to represent the school in the 2014 SPE conference."

"Wow. I'm so proud of you, hon. That's great!"

"It is." I stared at him cautiously.

He furrowed his eyebrows, "I sense a but."

I smiled, of course he did, "…But it's going to be in California."

"Oh." He deflated. Oh no.

"Dad, I really want to go on this trip. It's for free. I couldn't waste that opportunity."

"Yeah, but it's in California."

"Yeees, where we've been to lots of times." I tilted my head at him, "Besides, I'm not gonna go there alone, my classmate's coming with me. And Mr. Darby."

"Who is this classmate of yours?"

"Harvey. Harvey Specter. He was my partner in that assignment so we both got chosen."

My dad shifted his gaze to Jeff, silently asking him. Jeff just nodded at him.

"Come on, Dad." I shook his knees, urging him.

"When is this gonna be?"

"August 22nd to 25th. It's for four days. I'll only miss two days of class since it's gonna be on a weekend."

Dad cleared his throat, processing the information, "Where will you be staying?"

"At the hotel, where the conference will take place."

He paused, and said, "Okay."

"…Okay?"

"Yes, okay. But Jeff has to come with you."

"What?"

"What?" Jeff tilted his head in surprise.

"Dad, you realize it's impossible to work that out without blowing Jeff's cover, right?"

He snorted, "I don't care about Jeff's cover, who's going to protect you when you're there?" I was speechless. "Donna, you have a choice. It's either Jeff's coming with you, or you're not going on this trip." He said, returning to the newspaper he's been reading, ending the discussion. My jaw dropped open and I looked at Jeff, not believing what just happened. Jeff was wide-eyed, clearly shocked too at what my dad just said.

_I can't believe this is happening. It's like the first day of classes all over again._

* * *

**A/N: Thank you, thank you so much guys for your wonderful reviews. And apologies for the very late update. I wrote a one-shot to compensate for the late update, I hope you read it.**

**Someone said in the review that s/he thought that Donna's dad had died in the accident. Thanks for pointing that out, that's a detail I failed to clarify in the previous chapters. Yes, Donna's dad had survived the accident, but they lost a huge amount of money for his hospitalization.**

**The table is still open for suggestions on what you want to happen in the coming chapters. I was giggling with all your ideas, I liked them so much. I'll think of a way to include your ideas in the coming chapters. And btw, some of your ideas were already planned in my mind even before I wrote chapter 1. ;)**


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